Cards place Rolen on DL

[StlCards4ever515]

Sprained left shoulder sidelines All-Star third baseman

ST. LOUIS -- Spoiled last season by a relatively injury-free campaign, the Cardinals are once again remembering what it's like to make do without key players. Third baseman Scott Rolen was placed on the 15-day disabled list Thursday, retroactive to Wednesday, and Scott Seabol was recalled from Triple-A Memphis.
The Cardinals had only one core player go on the DL in all of 2004 -- catcher Mike Matheny. Rolen and Chris Carpenter both were hurt in September, but both injuries occurred after roster expansion, so no DL moves were needed. Already this year, they have done without closer Jason Isringhausen for two weeks, and now Rolen will be lost for a chunk of time.

Rolen sustained a sprained left shoulder in a collision with Dodgers first baseman Hee-Seop Choi on Tuesday night. He underwent an MRI exam Thursday morning, and after the results were read by Dr. George Paletta, the Cardinals' head team physician, the decision was made to place Rolen on the disabled list.

"Dr. Paletta's guess is that it's gonna be 10 days to 14, minimum," said Cardinals manager Tony La Russa. "That's very limiting, and he's got to get himself back in shape."

It's the second time in Rolen's career that he has been on the disabled list, and the first time since he was traded to St. Louis in 2002. He missed much of September last year with a calf injury.

John Mabry, Abraham Nunez and Seabol will split time at third base in Rolen's absence. Seabol, who turns 30 on Tuesday, has one career Major League at-bat, with the Yankees in 2001. He was hitting .325 with a .374 on-base percentage, eight home runs and a .658 slugging percentage for Memphis.

Seabol had a strong spring for St. Louis, when he competed for a backup infield spot, but eventually he lost out to Nunez and Hector Luna.

"The last five springs, it's been, 'Thanks a lot, kid. Thanks for working hard. Go down and get some ABs,'" Seabol said. "This time, it was different. It was, 'You're close. Keep working.' And it's paid off."

Seabol, a right-handed hitter, may start on Friday night in New York against Mets lefty Tom Glavine.

Izzy still sidelined: Isringhausen, expected to be activated on Thursday, will wait one more day before returning to the active roster. The right-hander pitched to hitters on Thursday morning after throwing three bullpen sessions in the past week.

"He threw [three] bullpens and didn't face any hitters," La Russa said. "We'd all be more comfortable if he faced hitters. He thinks he can face hitters at 10 o'clock and be ready at 2 or 3. It's a risk. He probably could, but why risk it?"

One factor playing into the decision may be the status of catcher Yadier Molina, who missed the previous three games with a sprained ankle. The Cards called up Mike Mahoney as catching insurance, and when Isringhausen is activated, Mahoney is expected to be sent out. It stands to reason that the club will want to make sure that Molina is fully functional before optioning Mahoney.

Molina plays: There was good news on the Molina front, however. He got the start on Thursday afternoon. Molina was technically available on Wednesday night in an emergency situation, but La Russa avoided using him. Einar Diaz went 1-for-11 in Molina's absence.

Today in Busch history: On May 12, 1966, Busch Stadium opened for business. The Cardinals beat the Braves, 4-3, when Lou Brock hit a bases-loaded single to drive in Curt Flood. Mike Shannon had the Cards' first hit in the new ballpark. Several members of that inaugural team, including Brock and then general manager Bing Devine, were honored before the game on Thursday.

Baby 'Birds: Adam Wainwright kept rolling for Memphis, striking out six and walking one in a 15-4 thrashing of Las Vegas. Hector Luna homered twice, including a grand slam, and Pete Zoccolillo added two homers for the Redbirds. ... Double-A Springfield rapped out 10 base hits and totaled 14 baserunners, but could only manage a single run in a 4-1 loss to San Antonio. ... Class A Palm Beach was held to six hits in a 3-2 loss to Dunedin. Calvin Hayes, playing second base, went 2-for-3. ... Class A Quad Cities won a rain-shortened game, 1-0, over Cedar Rapids in five innings. Dennis Dove went the distance, allowing two hits and three walks with five strikeouts.

The player of the day was Zoccolillo, who reached base four times on two homers, a single and a walk, scored three times and drove in five runs. The 28-year-old first baseman/outfielder signed as a Minor League free agent with the Cardinals this spring.

Coming up: The Cardinals hit the road for a 10-day, nine-game, three-city road trip that starts Friday night. In an intriguing matchup, New York native Jason Marquis faces off against his old Atlanta teammate, Tom Glavine. Saturday brings an even better battle, with Mark Mulder going against Pedro Martinez.

[StlCards4ever515]

Basically what this means, Is that it sucks with Are outstanding 3B going on the DL. The Cardinals are going to have alot of ground to make up

[love_that_reefer]

Basically what this means, Is that it sucks with Are outstanding 3B going on the DL. The Cardinals are going to have alot of ground to make up

Not to sound like an ass but it is OUR outstanding 3b, not ARE. Just for fututre reference. The Cards had a good enough offense and a good enough rotation to get through this. I didn't see how Rolen could have gotten that hurt onthe play. It wasn't that bad looking. Nunez and Mabry can pick up the slack for a little while.

[aTrUeCUBsFaN]

That really blows for the Cardinals. On Cardinals.com, it was reported Rolen could miss from 2 or 3 weeks to 6 weeks. They have enough offense and pitching to cover it, but how good their infield defense will be?

[HuskerFan2002]

If Rolen was out for 2-3 weeks, I would bear with it, but 6 weeks? Damn.. I think their infield would be shaky at times without him.